Frankenstein in #ENG3U and Scratch Culminating Project in #ICS2O

The third week of Semester Two is upon us! As anticipated, time is flying by – partially because of the nature of the second semester but also partially because of what we’re getting done in class.

In ENG3U – Grade 11 English, students have completed multiple essays, finishing the unit off with argumentative essays on a variety of topics. Students used descriptive feedback to improve their writing skills. I’m pretty happy with the results so far. The biggest issues needing development include:

Transitions linking paragraphs

Additional explanations/analysis of supporting points and arguments

What I really appreciated was the successful use of external sources as support, strong use of MLA conventions, and strong grammar skills.

We now move on to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, which is usually a novel students enjoy reading. We will begin the unit with some background information including learning about Gothic Literature, Romanticism and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and other Romantic Poets. Then we will move into the novel with a good understanding of its roots. This will take us to the March Break where we’ll pause before coming back and completing the novel.

In ICS2O – Grade 10 Computer Science, students continue to apply their knowledge of Scratch. There are some very skilled, self-motivated students in the class who are going above-and-beyond with the program. Students have figured out how to create customized scripts that make characters move naturally, (think of the fluid movements of Mario in Super Mario World.) Students are just finishing off their Scratch culminating project, which involves the creation of a simple game that incorporates user input, and has a beginning and end. We’ll wrap these up this week. Next up is our study of Computer Hardware and Software. Fun!

I’d like to thank everyone for working hard in class and making the first three weeks of the semester so awesome!